I liked the first book that I read by Tessa Bickers so was delighted to receive an early copy of this title. Once again, this author has written a book that was easy to read and enjoy.
Not everyone may feel that getting up before dawn is something to be lauded. However both Daisy and Tom are generally out on the bus before daylight, and each finds this time before London fully awakens for the day to be special.
Daisy is on her way to her job as an entertainment reporter. Tom is trying to get over his heartbreak and wants to be out of his flat. There he is on the bus, always reading Orlando by Virginia Woolf while Daisy is generally scrolling on her phone. When they get off the bus one day, and Daisy is threatened, Tom comes to her rescue and the two talk as Tom walks Daisy to her job.
From this beginning, Daisy and Tom find things to offer one another. Daisy will comb Orlando to try to figure out why the book was so important to Tom’s ex and if this book led to their breakup. For his part, Tom offers to photograph Daisy’s upcoming wedding.
There is a problem however, as it is possible that neither should really be with the ones that they were with. How will things play out? Will Daisy and Tom find their way to one another? Find out in these pages.
Tessa Bickers offers a good read here.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this title. All opinions are my own.
Pub date: 19 May 2026
Post first published on 10 April 2026
Description:
from the publisher
One book. Two strangers. An unforgettable journey as they rewrite the ending.
Daisy Douglas has spent her life behind the scenes: at work, in her relationships, and now, in planning a wedding she isn’t sure she even wants. As an entertainment journalist, she can spot the start of a story a mile away. So when her routine 4 a.m. bus ride to the newsroom takes a surprising turn, she notices.
For months, the same man has boarded at the same stop, reading the same tattered copy of Virginia Woolf’s Orlando over and over as if his life depends on it. When a broken-down bus and a shared walk through the quiet early-morning London streets finally throws them together, Tom reveals the heartbreaking truth as to why he can’t be without his novel.
Determined to help him find the answer to the riddle hidden in its pages, Daisy joins Tom on his strange literary quest—one that leads them to places neither of them ever expected. But as their friendship deepens, she starts to wonder if what they’re both looking for might not be in the book after all.
From the Publisher:
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 